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Kody's SARDS Research Association, Inc. 
Sudden Acquired Retinal Degeneration Syndrome (SARDS) SARDS is a disease that may affect dogs of all breeds, as well as mixed breeds. Generally it occurs in dogs between the ages of 7 and 14 and seems to affect more females than males. However, it does happen outside of these parameters. It results in total destruction of the rods and cones of the retina producing complete blindness.SARDs is characterized by excessive urination, excessive thirst and usually a ravenous appetite and rapid weight gain in the months prior to sudden and complete loss of vision in both eyes. Vision is often lost in 1-3 days. The final diagnosis of SARDS must first rule out other vision problems and is then confirmed by an electroretinogram (ERG). If this test shows the retina working normally then SARDS is not the cause of the blindness. Routine blood work will sometimes reveal changes which are suggestive of Cushing's Syndrome (hyperadrencorticism). This needs to be confirmed with specific testing and treated if present. Some researchers feel that SARDS has underlying adrenal issues but this has not been confirmed at present. Initially it was thought that SARDS dogs would live normal life spans and indeed some do. However, recent data has indicated that there may be a shortened life span, sometimes resulting from housetraining issues. SARDS is considered to be a painless disease, the dog is simply very confused about what has happened. Since it occurs so quickly the dog does not have time to build a memory map of its surroundings and thus has a harder time adjusting initially then it might if something like cataracts were the cause of the blindness. If your dog does not appear to be adjusting to their blindness they need to have more specific testing done to see what other conditions may be present. How you can help your dog adjust Avoid obesity, this is the major health issue for a visually impaired dog. Limit movement of any key features of the dogs environment such as food, water dishes, their bed. These serve as reference points to the environment. If they become disoriented take them back to one of these spots to help them reorient. Scent clues such as perfume, carpet products etc. can allow them to identiy furniture legs, stairways and the door to outside. Do NOT clip their whiskers and keep their ears clean and free of infection as these become key elements for blind animals to navigate with. Keep them on a tether or fenced in a yard and be especially careful of pools. Try to envision the environment from their level and take precautions to eliminate anything which might be a danger (something that could poke their eye for example). Baby gates, netting on balconies etc. all help protect them. Noisemaking items are useful, toys that jingle, wind chimes by the door are all useful. When walking your dog be sure that they cannot get too far away from you and walk into obstacles that may injure them. A piece of PVC pipe over a leash may stiffen it and make a better guide helping to prevent facial trauma. Organization | Purpose/Mission | SARDS Desc | SARDS Stories | Links | Donate | Volunteer Questionaire | Contact Us | Memorials | Home |